After the popularity of my Vegan Seitan Steak, which ended up being one of the top 10 recipes of 2018, I wanted to start this year off with an exciting follow-up recipe. Many of you requested a seitan chicken style recipe... well, ask and you shall receive. I introduce to you my Vegan Seitan Tenders! ...And yes, it does taste like chicken. Ba dum dum tsk!
It took many, many, many rounds of recipe testing to get these vegan seitan tenders just right, but I finally nailed it. It was important to me that this vegan chicken recipe was more tender in texture than my vegan steaks (which have a chewier texture similar to traditional steak). The tenders needed to be lighter in colour, tasty but still basic enough that you could season them any way you like, easy to make, and of course incredibly delicious.
I tried baking the seitan and boiling it, but in the end, I still preferred my method of steaming the seitan which allows for the best juicy texture without being weirdly squishy (which can happen with boiling). I tried adding chickpeas to the seitan but that made it too mealy and I discover instead, that the key was adding soft tofu which makes the cutlets delicate enough to cut with the side of your fork, but still strong and meaty enough to toss on a grill. I played around with ratios and seasonings until I got it juuuussst so.
The final result: vegan seitan tenders that are, you guessed it, tender. They are juicy and succulent. The tenders are easy to make and can be prepared ahead of time and stored in the fridge for several days, or in the freezer so you can have them on hand whenever you like. Then, the best part is that when you are ready to serve, you can fry them, grill them, marinate them, bake them, or treat them any way you would have treated a chicken dish.
Serve a vegan seitan tender on a bun, bread or crust them, slice them for salad, pasta, or stir fry, cut them into nuggets and fry or bake, add them to burritos, tacos, sandwiches- the options are endlessly delicious!
Just 8 ingredients, 40 minutes to make plus an hour of cooling. 1 recipe makes 6 tenders and each one contains 156 calories, 8g carbohydrates, 26g protein, and 2g fat. Boom!
To make vegan seitan tenders: add all of the ingredients to a food processor and combine.
Continue to mix the dough until everything is well combined and the dough forms a ball.
Alternatively, if you do not have a food processor you can mix everything together in a large bowl working the dough until it forms a ball.
Lightly dust a clean work surfaces with a bit of the vital wheat gluten. Turn the dough ball onto the surface and lightly dust the top with a little more vital wheat gluten. The dough will be soft and very sticky so this will help it from sticking to your hands. Cut the dough ball into 6 pieces and use the tips of your fingers to press each piece of dough into an oval shape about 5" x 6".
Add several inches of water to a large pot with a steamer basket and bring to a simmer. Lightly grease the steamer basket and lay the tenders in the basket. If the tenders need to overlap each other, spray the tenders with a bit of oil to stop them from sticking together. Cover and steam at a simmer for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through so they steam evenly. They will double in size.
*If the end appearance of the tenders is important to you, make sure to allow lots of room around each tender to expand. You may want to steam the tenders in batches as when they overlap each other they can sometimes end up as weird shapes. This won't matter if you plan on slicing them, but you can consider it if you plan to serve the tenders whole.
Once steamed, remove the tenders and let cool. Cover or put in an airtight container and chill in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour, or for up to 3 - 4 days. You can either chill the tenders without any additional seasoning, or you could toss the tenders in your favourite marinade. The tenders shrink and firm up a bit when chilled and this results in the best texture.
Check out my recipes for 12 Seitan or Tofu Marinades for endless flavour combos!
Once chilled, the tenders are now ready to cook with and enjoy. You can treat them any way that you might prepare a chicken breast. Make a vegan seitan tender burger, bread or crust them, slice them for salad, pasta, or stirfry, cut them into nuggets and fry or bake, add them to burritos, tacos, or sandwiches.
In these photos, I fried them in a bit of vegan butter, and seasoned with salt, pepper, parsley, and a squeeze of lemon. This makes the outside crispy and the insides stays nice and tender and juicy. Perfection!
(click stars to vote)
Vegan Seitan Tenders
Servings:
PRINT
PIN
COMMENT
Ingredients
For the vegan seitan tenders:
- 1 ½ cups vital wheat gluten,, plus more for dusting
- 1 block (10.6oz/ 300g) soft or silken tofu, (1 ¼ cups)
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons vegetable broth powder,, vegetable instant stock mix powder, or 1 vegetable bouillon cube
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to a food processor and pulse to combine until everything is well mixed and the dough forms a ball. Alternatively, if you do not have a food processor you can mix everything but the vital wheat gluten together in a large bowl until well combined. Add the vital wheat gluten and mix it into a dough ball.
- Lightly dust a clean work surfaces with a bit of the vital wheat gluten. Turn the dough ball onto the surface and lightly dust the top with a little more vital wheat gluten. The dough will be soft and very sticky so this will help it from sticking to your hands. Do not knead the dough, kneading it will make it tough. Cut the dough ball into 6 pieces and use the tips of your fingers to press each piece of dough into an oval shape about 5" x 6".
- Add several inches of water to a large pot with a steamer basket and bring to a simmer. Lightly grease the steamer basket and lay the tenders in the basket. If the tenders need to overlap each other, spray the tenders with a bit of oil to stop them from sticking together. Cover and steam at a simmer for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through so they steam evenly. They will double in size. Make sure to keep it at a gentle simmer for the best texture.
- Once steamed, remove the tenders and let cool. Cover or put in an airtight container and chill in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour, or for up to 3 - 4 days. You can either chill the tenders without any additional seasoning, or you could toss the tenders in your favourite marinade. The tenders shrink and firm up a bit when chilled and this results in the best texture.
- Once chilled, the tenders are fully cooked and edible, but you can now treat them as you would raw chicken -season and cook them as you desire. The cooking time can be short as they only need to be heated through but prepare them any way that you might prepare a chicken breast. Pan fry or grill them, bread or crust them, slice them for salad, pasta, or stirfry, cut them into nuggets, add them to burritos, tacos, or sandwiches. The options are endless!Learn how to master the art of making seitan in my new cooking course Seitan School! Click here to learn more and enroll.
Notes
Nutrition
Bon appetegan!
Sam.
J O says
Hey, I love this recipe. Is there any way to make this without tofu?
JH says
I really hope so, I was just about to comment this.
JO says
In the seitan steak recipe on this website, they use cooked lentils instead of tofu. I made this recipe subsituting in 90g dry lentils after cooking them.
It turned out pretty well! No major difference in taste. Although, if you usually knead the dough, do it less so when making it with lentils - it's a lot firmer than the tofu version.
Sonya says
Wow the photo looks like actual chicken breast. Cant wait to try this one. Ty
linda myers says
Hi Sam, I was just reading in your cookbook on 'roll with the punches!' A recipe failing and renaming it and I started cracking up!! I made this recipe the first time and it came out GREAT! Well the second...not so much. I put them on to steam and went outside to water plants and got distracted. Next thing you know my pot went dry and burnt 🙁 I was going to throw out the puffed up dry rubbery mess but my husband can't waste anything and said he'd take them to work. He used them like bread, said they weren't rubbery and was calling them naan. He actually asked me to make them like that again!! I said 'no' LOL
Thanks for the laugh!
linnie
Sam Turnbull says
Hahaha! I love that! Seitan bread ? 🙂
Scott Hipkins says
Sam,
You mention in the video that you are often asked about gluten-free seitan. I have had some success with pea protein - I noticed that many fake meat products are made with pea protein.
I bought it online - it is sold as a powdered protein shake (just be sure to get the unflavored type). I'm sure that your fearless experimentation will yield great results - please keep me posted.
Cheers
Scott
Marla O says
An absolute staple in our kitchen! I always have a recipe of them in a ziploc bag in the freezer in the smoky-spicy marinade. So many ways to use them...well, just like a chicken breast! Only change from the recipe is I process everything except the gluten in the blender and then add the gluten by hand in a bowl.
John says
Great recipe. I was also thinking to wrap the entire dough in aluminum and roast it in the oven.
Have you tried that as well?
The moisture/gluten ratio seems okay for that but I am not sure...
Britt says
Sam, this is an amazing recipe. The key, as you state, is MINIMAL mixing in the food processor. I mixed the wet ingredients first before adding the vital wheat gluten. My German partner loved it. Tomorrow, we will Schnitzel-ize it! Amazing. Thank you!
Izzi says
These were excellent! And I found were especially good after freezing with the marinade (I tried the sweet and smoky -delish.) I have to say you have THE best recipes for meat alternatives, plus so easy and simple. It's been saving me a ton of $'s over already prepared brand name stuff at the store.
Sara says
Hi Sam quick question. The tenders need to be completely chilled before doing the marinade? I ask because in the video, while putting them in the ziplock, you say: "The tenders are still a bit warm from the steamer and this is perfectly fine". So...which one is the best way? And once they've been marinaded for how many days can they be stored in the fridge before cooking? Thanks so much!
Sherry says
I really like this recipe. This is the second time I've made this and I've adjusted it slightly as I dont have a food processor and it didn't mix well last time. I put the whole 300g package of tofu and the tiny bit of liquid that was inside into a bowl with everything except the vwg and used a hand mixer until it was all combined then I added the vwg and mixed with a spoon until I needed to use my hands. After I cut it into pieces I steamed for 30min flipping halfway then put on a drying rack for like 5-10minutes until it was cool enough to handle. I cut into straps and will freeze them after they sit in the fridge overnight. This time all the spices were evenly distributed. I also used a tsp of no-chicken bouillon instead of vegetable bouillon. Worked out great!!!!
Terry says
These are awesome and really easy to make. I have been recommending these to everyone.
AccidentallyVeganDee says
Wow! That's all I have to say!
Ok, no it's not... 😛
Made this recipe as chicken chunks or nuggets. I just filled my tummy with such deliciousness, I had to come back and tell you. I coated the nuggets with taco sauce. Yes, taco sauce! Then I dredged them in panko crumbs and air fried them.
Holy CRAP!! It felt like a sinfully decadent treat, but it was really minimal in the macros. Freaking brilliant!! This recipe is my new go to for protein (along with the steaks. Mmmmmm, the steaks.).
Helen Singleton says
I don't have a steamer, what can I use instead?
Debbie says
Do you have a metal colander Helen? If so, place over a pot of boiling water and steam. Or, use a veggie steamer, ($2) and steam in batches.
HELEN says
I do have a metal colander. Thanks for the tip! Can't wait to make this
Kristyn says
We've been vegan for a year this month and I've only just gotten brave enough to make seitan. I made this recipe and not only was it incredibly easy, but we also absolutely loved it. My husband was so impressed and I love how easy it was to marinade and toss a few in a skillet for dinner a few days later. Silken tofu is a little bit hard to find where we are, so next time I make it I'm going to just use regular firm tofu and see how it turns out. Thank you for a great recipe!
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful!! Thrilled you both love it, Kristyn! I love to make a double batch and have a bunch frozen in different marinades in the freezer. Perfect for easy dinners!
Bianca Neves says
I'm not a big fan of seitan. I can always taste the vital wheat gluten, which is something I don't like. But this recipe along with your Sweet&Smoky marinade was delicious! I wouldn't say it can fool someone as chicken, but who cares? It's packed with protein and delicious! A perfect vegan alternative.
Although the texture is really close to chicken, I must say!
I still have 4 more waiting for me in the fridge: 2 in the Italian marinade, 2 in the Balsamic marinade.
What a treat! Thanks, Sam! ♥
raisa says
Hi!
I would love to start making seitan and saw this one in a group. A girl made it and said that it's amazing. It looks easy enough for a beginner. I don't have a food processor yet (shopping for one). So if I don't have it by Christmas, how do I mix it? With a mixer with dough hooks?
I look forward to your reply.
Cheers,
Raisa
Kristine says
Mine came out spongy, almost bread like. What might I have done wrong?
Hirley says
I really like this recipe, with the caveat that the cutlets are extremely chewy if not marinated or simmered.
I've found that simmering them for 40 minutes before the final cook makes a nice texture. But just steaming and chilling them before cooking results in a very chewy final product.
Felicia Clayton says
I made this for the first time today. And its made the cut to become one of my staples for sure!
I do have a question. Should I have pressed the tofu first? Initially the dough was WAY too thin to work with. But I added a bit more Vital wheat gluten until I was able to work with it. And even then it was very soft. So much so that I was worried it wouldn't hold together while moving to the steamer.
Not only did it hold, they were tasty right out of the steamer. I shared pictures of the end results on facebook.They looked so good my mom the meat eater came over to try it.
I marinaded two cutlets in the coconut curry, heated it up in my grill pan and we had it over salad. She NEVER likes mock meats. But this she ate with a smile.
Ren says
This was the third time I've tried making seitan, and the first time it hasn't turned out like boot leather. I was eating strips of it as soon as it came out of the steamer - the texture and taste are both great! I used it in a stir fry, and my husband declared it a winner, too.
I then got excited and made the seitan pepperoni, which is also delicious, so I can't wait to try more of your seitan recipes.
Hail seitan and Sam!
Allie says
Perhaps I'm biased because this was the first seitan recipe I ever tried, but it's my favorite. I try three of the marinades each time I make a batch, and so far they've all been delicious. I love that it freezes well, because I cook for just myself and am also frequently lazy. It's nice to be able to put extra in the freezer, and have something so yummy on hand when I don't feel like doing much more than tossing something in a pan (though I do have to think ahead enough to thaw it out first).
Kimberly Pickard says
So I gave this a try. Followed the directions closely, soaked 2 of the patties in the balsamic marinade from Sunday to Tuesday. I fried them in the pan as Sam suggests, 2 minutes each side. The flavor from the marinade was good but the texture was not pleasant. They had a rubbery consistency to them, not hard and super chewy like you're chewing forever but still a soft rubbery chew. They weren't really enjoyable to eat. What should I do different? I made a double batch so I have 10 more to go. I put 2 more in the Italian marinade so we will probably grill those and see if that helps, then the rest I froze. I am kind of discouraged. Ideas?
Deb says
I made these and the first time they were delicious and tender, but the other four times they were much too chewy! Dying to figure out why. I wonder if it has to do with how much the "dough" is mixed - but I did try to mix as little as possible. I think it does say not to work the dough too much or they will be chewy.
Sam Turnbull says
Yes, mixing the dough too much will make them chewy. I also find they get more tender the longer they marinate in the fridge. It also depends on how you're heating them when ready to serve, I like to pan fry mine, and then let them rest for a few minutes before slicing and serving. I hope that helps!